Bail Bonds For High Profile Perpotraitor – Five Famous Cases
When a high profile case hits the news, one of the things everyone tends to talk about is how much the bail will be. For severe cases, such as murder and rape, bail is usually set pretty high, and while your average, everyday person caught up in a horrible situation might have trouble posting said bail, the rich and the famous typically have no issue with posting millions of dollars to remain free before their trial.
Here are five recent high-profile criminal cases and the circumstances surrounding their bonds.
George Zimmerman
In case you’ve been living in a cave or have your head stuck in the sand trying to avoid everything that has to do with the real world, you’ve heard of George Zimmerman. In late February of this year, Zimmerman, a member of his neighborhood watch patrol, allegedly confronted 17-year old Trayvon Martin, who was walking home from a convenience store. A scuffle ensued, which ultimately resulted in Zimmerman drawing his weapon and shooting and killing Martin. Zimmerman claimed self-defense, and eventually he was arrested.
Upon his arrest, his bail was set at $150,000. It was eventually discovered that Zimmerman had raised more than $130,000 through his website, with the judge asserting that he manipulated the court and intended to use the money to flee. The new bond was thus set at $1,000,000, a price often reserved for murderers. The amount, however, was simply set that high so as to ensure that he would remain in the court. This came on the heels of Zimmerman’s wife being charged with perjury for lying about their financials. She subsequently posted a small $1,000 bail bond.
Bernie Madoff
Bernie Madoff is universally recognized as one of the most despicable human beings in the world. A former New York businessman and financier, Madoff is responsible for the largest instance of financial fraud in United States history, bilking hundreds of people out of a combined $65 billion dollars. In 2008 he was arrested, leading to great outrage over the conditions of his bail.
Due to the nature of his crimes, his bail was set at a whopping $10 million. Unable to meet the conditions of the bond (including finding four people to co-sign it), the terms were modified to allow Madoff to receive what is essentially house arrest, subject to a curfew lasting from 7 p.m. to 9 a.m. He was allowed to travel freely through Connecticut, Long Island, and southern New York, but between the curfew hours he had to stay in his luxury penthouse apartment in Manhattan.
Naturally, everyone was incredibly upset about this, as the man responsible for the largest Ponzi scheme in history was essentially free despite committing an incredibly heinous crime that ruined many, many lives. Thankfully, he was eventually sent to jail, with a projected release date of November 14, 2139. Methinks the 74 year old man won’t be seeing freedom any time soon.
O.J. Simpson
Everyone knows about O.J. Simpson and his high profile murder case. Accused of murdering his ex-wife and her lover, he was acquitted in the mid-nineties, which ultimately lead to a series of financial and other legal troubles for the aging former football store. Once such incident occurred in 2007, ultimately leading to his incarceration and one of the most idiotic decisions the man has ever made.
In September of 2007, Simpson and others were accused of robbing a hotel casino at gunpoint to recover what he claimed was stolen sports memorabilia. Talk about a lapse in judgment. He was eventually charged with multiple felonies, with a bond set at $125,000. As an added bonus, he was told not to have any contact with his co-defendants, and order he would go on to violate. This resulted in the judge raising his bond to $250,000 and telling Simpson “What were you thinking?”
Despite posting the required 15% of the $250,000, O.J. Simpson was eventually found guilty and is now serving 33 years in jail. He is eligible for parole after 9 years.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn
Dominique Strauss-Kahn is a French economist, lawyer, and politician who, until recently, served as the managing director for the International Monetary Fund, an international organization designed to “stabilize exchange rates and assist the reconstruction of the world’s international payment system post-World War II.” One can imagine his career would still be going had he not been accused of sexual assault and attempted rape of a hotel maid in New York.
After being arrested in May of 2011, he eventually posted a whopping $1,000,000 in bail and was forced into house arrest. Due to the lack of credibility of the plaintiff, the charges were eventually dropped, though Strauss-Kahn did admit that he had a sexual encounter with the maid but never acted aggressively. This case is interesting primarily because Strauss-Kahn had to pay such a large amount of money for an accusation that seemingly had no merit to begin with.
Casey Anthony
One of the most high profile cases in recent memory was the one surrounding Casey Anthony and the disappearance of her daughter Caylee. Casey was arrested after filing false statements with the police concerning the disappearance of her daughter, and was released after a bail bondsman named Leonard Padilla posted her bond of $500,200. After being released, Caylee’s body was eventually found, and Casey found herself back in jail. This time, her parents had her bonded out for $500,000, and a month later she was back in jail, charged with first degree murder, aggravated manslaughter of a child, aggravated child abuse, and four counts of providing false information to the police.
After having a combined $1,000,200 in bond posted to secure her release on two separate occasions, she was finally held without bail, and thus remained in prison throughout her trial. As everyone soon learned, she was acquitted and eventually released.
